


We deserve much better than we've had

by GemmaRose



Series: The Lawlu Gay Pirates AU [1]
Category: One Piece
Genre: Abuse, Alternative Universe - Gay Pirates (song), Cuddling, Doffy is just a big bag of dicks, Emotional Manipulation, Fluff and Angst, Happy Ending, Hugs, Hurt/Comfort, Kissing, Law's got 99 problems and Doffy is about 90 of them, M/M, Pedophilia, but only really losely, demiromo-asexual Luffy ftw, who should not be allowed near children
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2015-09-28
Updated: 2015-09-28
Packaged: 2018-04-23 18:25:31
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Rape/Non-Con, Underage
Chapters: 1
Words: 5,520
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/4887109
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/GemmaRose/pseuds/GemmaRose
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Law joined the Doflamingo Pirates to destroy things. He never expected to live long enough to fall in love, let alone find somebody who would return the affection. But of course, nothing is easy when Doflamingo gets involved.</p>
            </blockquote>





	We deserve much better than we've had

Trafalgar Law was ten years old when Flevance burned. Two weeks later, he found the Doflamingo Pirates in their base at Spider Miles. They accepted him quickly enough, the other young pirates eager to have another crewmate their age, and Law did his best to ignore the shivers the captain sent down his spine.

Two years later, Flevance was nothing but a distant memory, and with it his family. That was a good thing, he told himself when he couldn’t sleep at night. The crew was his family now, Doffy and the executives and the other children. Even the new kid they’d found ramming holes in the sides of fishing boats with his head. Only Corazón seemed to dislike him, but then again, that nut job hated everyone on the ship who was under the age of twenty. He’d even punted Dellinger back into the ocean, and that kid was the smallest ten year old Law had ever seen.

Not long before he turned thirteen, Law’s past finally caught up with him. The white patches on his skin now covered much more than the rich brown colour he’d inherited from his father, and Doffy insisted he stay in bed until a solution could be found. His captain was an idiot to think a cure existed, but when he woke up with a cool cloth on his head and the kind blond at his bedside, Law didn’t mind so much. The Doflamingo Pirates had taken him in when nobody else would even look him in the eyes, and he’d come to almost crave the captain’s gaze. Doffy only ever looked at _him_ like that, like he’d done something just exactly right on the first try, and it felt good.

One evening he woke in Doffy’s arms instead of in his hammock, and once the nausea had faded past the point of maybe making him puke on his captain he realized they were outside. It was snowing, and there was a huge fire up at the top of a snowy hill on the island they’d anchored by. Diamante was holding a bright red fruit shaped like a heart, and Law’s eyes widened. He ate the Ope-Ope No Mi, and Doffy sat with him in the infirmary as often as a captain reasonably could until Law was able to walk out with him, the white mask of certain death reduced to smaller patches of pale but healthy skin. He had a feeling he’d never quite be rid of the marks, but they were sorta like scars in that regard, and scars were pretty cool.

It took until he left the infirmary for Law to realize Corazón had left, and only a few days longer for the rumour to reach him that Doffy’s brother had been a Marine spy. He clenched his fists, and swore that he’d wring the mute’s neck for daring to betray their captain. Doffy hit him for that, and he apologized profusely. Of course the edict of blood would still apply to his beloved captain’s brother. Corazón was the person Doffy loved most, his right hand man. No level of betrayal would ever change that.

\---

Law worked hard to improve with his devil fruit, and when he was fifteen he managed to actually pull off a soul-swap without accidentally killing either target. Doffy had pulled him into a tight hug afterwards, and planted a kiss on his cheek. Law raised a hand to the spot when he was released, and stood stock still for a few long seconds before a small smile bloomed on his face. Doffy was proud of him. He’d helped win the fight, done something right for once. That meant this was good, didn’t it? Yeah, definitely good.

It wasn’t until a few years later that Law met the boy who would change everything. Law spotted him brawling behind the bar while Trebol and Pica settled a dispute with some guy who had been trying to stiff them on shipments of weapons, and went around the building to get a better look. The boy had a devil fruit, and knew how to use it. He beat his enemy into the dirt hard enough that the man wouldn’t be getting up any time soon, if ever, and then his eyes fell on Law. It was a chilling glare, harder than any of the executives’ anger, but in a split second he’d gone from murderous to cheery.

His name was Monkey D. Luffy, and Law’s heart jumped a bit in his chest. For the first time in, well, ever, he spoke his full name. Luffy invited him to join a yet-unnamed crew, and by the time Trebol and Pica emerged from the bar Law had convinced the younger teen to ask to join the Doflamingo Pirates instead. Doflamingo accepted Luffy after seeing what the shorter boy could do, and Law almost wanted to give his captain a hug. But hugs were something you got from Doffy, not the other way round, so he simply smiled and thanked the blond.

\---

It only took a week for Luffy to befriend the other teens. The boy was like a bundle of living sunshine, and when he was nearby something in Law’s chest began to relax and uncurl. Doffy didn’t look at him quite so intently, but somehow that wasn’t so bad. Luffy’s smile was warm, and his hugs were warmer, and for the first time in eight long years Law smiled and found he actually meant it.

It took all of a month for him to put two and two together, and when they added up to “I love Luffy” his throat closed up briefly. Doffy wouldn’t be happy if he found out. Doffy would be downright furious, and Law couldn’t stop his mind from running full tilt towards a worst case scenario. The captain would throw him and Luffy both overboard, and find somebody else to eat the Ope Ope No Mi and become his next Corazón and be his favourite. His chest had been tightening at the thought when Luffy strolled over and slung an arm around his shoulders and then- the future didn’t seem so scary. Luffy hugged and smiled at everyone. It wasn’t like he even liked Law that much, at least not any more than the other teens. So as long as he didn’t say anything, nothing would have to change.

Not saying anything turned out to be really fucking hard. Luffy’s hugs for him seemed to get warmer and tighter and more frequent, and once or twice he even planted a kiss on Law’s face. Law lasted three weeks. He took Luffy out on the island they were docked at under the pretense of stretching his legs, and it was a sign of how implicitly Doffy trusted him that nobody was sent to follow them. For some reason what he was about to do felt like betraying his captain, but when Luffy was enthusiastically kissing him back all those worries melted away. Being with Luffy felt _right_ , only that wasn’t the right word to use because that meant that Doffy’s love felt wrong and that couldn’t be true.

Still, Law coaxed Luffy into not telling anyone. Especially Buffalo, who could be plied for silence or information about as easily as a devil fruit user could drown. This “mystery feeling” was something which should remain a mystery to everyone else. And surprisingly, Luffy kept his big mouth shut. He didn’t kiss Law in front of the others, or hug him much longer than he hugged Baby 5 and Dellinger. But whenever they were given night watch together, Law only put up a token resistance to Luffy wrapping him in a huge warm hug. And yet, every following morning he wondered if he shouldn’t have protested more. If Doffy knew, they would both be thrown overboard for sure.

\---

Three months after their first kiss, Doflamingo was the one who came up to the crow’s nest to relieve them of night watch. He laid a hand on Law’s shoulder, and once Luffy was back in the bunk rooms he began to speak. His tone was the same as ever, entirely at odds with the small speech he was giving. He knew about Luffy, knew about the whole thing. He’d known from the start that the rubber boy was stealing Law’s heart away from him.

Most of Law’s internal organs felt like they’d been relocated a few feet lower at this news, but the frantic pounding of his heart against his ribcage betrayed the truth. This was it, this was the night Doffy killed him. Absurdly, the thought flashed through his head that he hoped Luffy would be spared. Luffy was worth so much more than him, he had dreams and ambitions, if one of them was to live it should be him.

He cringed, waiting to be struck for his betrayal, but the blow never came. Instead, Doffy gripped his chin and tilted it up, stooping to press a harsh kiss to Law’s lips. Law stiffened, but didn’t move. Doffy was the one who loved him, who cared about him even after his whole country burned. His captain kissed much harder than Luffy did, and Doffy evidently knew what he was doing in a was Luffy completely didn’t. When they parted, Law suppressed the completely unreasonable urge to vomit and stared up at the blond.

His captain gave him a choice, more of an ultimatum really, and Law agreed in a heartbeat. Doffy hugged him tight afterwards, and his praises were still warm but nowhere near as warm as Luffy’s smile. The next morning, nothing on the ship was different. They sailed, Luffy fell overboard and had to be rescued by Dellinger, and the rubberman got a few Haki-infused punches for troubling them. When Luffy pulled Law in for a tight hug later, Law returned the embrace with as much force as he was able. He kissed Luffy harder than ever before, and Luffy responded with enthusiasm and a hug which involved arms stretching around Law’s torso multiple times.

That night, however, Doffy proposed helping Law study to fine tune his medical skills so he could use his devil fruit more effectively. When his captain's bedroom door shut behind him, Law had to consciously shove down a baseless rising dread. Doffy loved him, Doffy would never hurt him without reason. He smiled for his captain, and nodded along as the man spoke. Within this room he will obey without question. He will do what he is asked, and speak of it to nobody. It will be their secret, because how would it look if the captain were to be seen playing favourites? Law agreed without complaint. Not only because Luffy would suffer otherwise, but because Doffy loved best those who were loyal to him, and of course Law wanted that. That was what he’d craved since he joined this crew, though he hadn’t been able to put it into words at the time.

Doffy loved him, and Law clung to this fact as his captain bound his wrists with string and did things he was sure Luffy had never even dreamed of. It hurt, but Doffy apologised so sweetly for the pain. His captain stroked his hair afterwards, praised him for his performance, and Law cradled the words close to his chest. This couldn’t possibly be wrong, because Doffy loved him and didn’t even care that Luffy loved him too. But still as he formed a Room in the infirmary and encouraged his bruised wrists and aching muscles to heal faster, he couldn’t shake the heaviness in his heart.

“Study sessions” with Doffy were every other night, and quickly his captain stopped apologising for any pain. Law should be used to it by now, accustomed to the things his captain liked, but he couldn’t help tensing up every time he was stripped bare and Doffy’s strings wrapped around his wrists and lower legs. He quickly mastered the fine art of coaxing his flesh to heal faster, knitting muscle and skin and everything else back together without leaving anything but the faintest of scars. It was a good thing he only ever wore long pants anyways, and with winter setting in he had good reason to keep his arms covered at all times.

After a few months, Law realised that the best part of every day was Luffy. It had been true for a while now, but one morning he woke up and it hit him like a sucker punch. He loved Luffy, so damn much. The younger teen was his sun and sky, the brightest and most vibrant thing in his world, and any number of other cliches from old love songs. That night was a “study session” but afterwards, when he’d cleaned away the blood from Doffy’s strings and healed his cuts into faint scars, Law waited for Luffy to finish his watch with Buffalo. He pulled the rubber boy aside before they entered the room they shared with Buffalo and Dellinger, and pressed Luffy against the wall with a kiss.

He didn’t mean to say it, didn’t mean to voice the words which had been glowing in his chest all day, but when he pulled away and saw Luffy grinning like he’d just been given the best present ever, it just slipped out. He almost flinched as soon as the words left his mouth. Stupid, stupid. Luffy didn’t even understand the concept of romance, there was no way he felt the same. Law fully expected to be pushed away, to be laughed at and told his feelings were wrong and dumb and one-sided. So when strong hands gripped the front of his shirt and pulled him in for another kiss, he was caught completely off guard. Off balance too, but Luffy caught him and _said it back_ and Law almost laughed with him. He’d almost forgotten how nice it was to be hugged, really hugged, by somebody who loved you with all their soul.

\---

But of course, nothing good ever lasted. During their next “study session” Doflamingo was rougher than usual, his strings cutting deeper than ever, and Law hated every tear that threatened to fall as he patched himself up. He knew why he was being punished, but that didn’t give him any right to be so weak as to _cry_ about it. He deserved this, it was the price for trying to give his heart to two people at once. And after all, the heart of the problem was him, so it was better that he suffer for it than Luffy.

Doffy’s threads found their way around Law’s neck, and then into it. The parasite string was one of his favourite techniques to see in action, but when it was applied to him it suddenly became much less entertaining. But it made Doffy smile, and it felt like so long since Law has seen his captain smile so happily that he didn’t complain even a little bit in his head when he had to Room the remaining strings out of his body afterwards.

Then came the pranks. Or at least, they started as pranks. Bits of metal in his food, glue on the inside of his shoes, a bucket of something sticky and stinky balanced over the infirmary door. The last one he discovered after a “study session” and it burned so bad in his cuts he had to shower it off before he could concentrate enough to form a Room. But that was neither the worst of it, nor the end. Somebody drenched his hammock with seawater, while he was sleeping in it, and he woke up in a panic like he hadn't since he was dying of Amber Lead Poisoning. A few days after that he found broken glass shards jammed in his shoes, accompanied by a note in Dellinger’s cramped hand threatening to stick them in Luffy’s food or sandals if they left Law’s feet before bed.

That night, on watch and hours before he could safely remove his shoes, Luffy pinned him against the mast and demanded answers. Law hadn’t realised Luffy was perceptive enough to notice any changes, hadn’t thought he’d changed enough for anyone to notice really, hadn’t really expected anyone would care enough. But apparently he had changed in Luffy’s eyes, become quieter and less affectionate, and the rubberman did care. Not because he wanted more affection or more conversations, both of which Law could easily provide, but because he wanted his Torao to be happy.

Had it been anybody else speaking, Law would’ve doubted their sincerity. But this was Luffy, Luffy who didn’t know how to lie to save his life, Luffy who only ever spoke his mind and put all of his heart and soul into everything he did. It was still hard to believe, but Law found himself breaking under Luffy’s pleading eyes like the glass which had ground to so much dust beneath his heels. He only meant to admit to the bare bones of the situation, his infidelity to the captain and the tormenting from the other boys, but somehow the whole story spilled out instead. Luffy’s arms around him gripped tighter and tighter as the words kept flowing, and by the end Law had his knees curled tight to his chest.

Luffy said his name, his given name, and when he lifted his head he saw the rubberman’s face was dark and stormy. He’d thought he knew what it looked like when Luffy was angry, but this was on a whole nother level. This was murderous rage, clear and simple. But, somewhat surprisingly, not a bit of that boundless anger was directed at him. Luffy wove their fingers together oh so gently, and Law held on tightly as the rubberman swore to exact vengeance. Law opened his mouth to protest, to say that he wasn’t worth breaking the edict of blood for, but what came out instead was a strangled sob.

Luffy removed his shoes and socks, and Law didn’t try to stop him from pulling out the biggest shards of glass in his messed up feet but he didn’t make a Room to help either. Luffy placed his sandals on Law’s feet when he was done, and Law melted into the kiss Luffy gave him afterwards. The younger teen stood and stretched, and Law almost laughed when the rubberman asked if he wanted a snack. He declined, and assured Luffy that he would be fine on his own for a few minutes.

It was the splash which alerted him something was wrong, and when he looked down at the deck he saw Luffy striding towards the door to the bedrooms rather than the door to the kitchen. Law’s feet screamed with every step, but he ran anyways. Luffy was in Doflamingo’s room, the door hanging wide open, but there was no yelling or sounds of fighting. Strings glinted around the shorter teen’s neck, and Law threw himself between the captain and Luffy without thinking.

Doflamingo scowled, and Law pleaded for mercy. Yes, he had been wrong. Yes, he had disobeyed. Yes, this whole stupid affair was his fault. Doflamingo lowered his hand, the strings around Luffy’s neck loosening slightly, and Law nodded when the question was posed. Yes, he would accept the punishment in Luffy’s stead. Yes, he would cut all ties with Luffy. Yes, he would remain on this crew until his dying day, so long as Luffy was allowed to go free.

Luffy tried to protest, tried to demand that the captain leave his Torao alone, and Law Roomed him out onto the deck at a look from Doflamingo. The razor sharp threads which bound him were familiar, and he didn’t even try to resist the parasite string in his neck. He said the words Doflamingo wanted to hear, submitted completely to the captain’s will, and gritted his teeth around countless screams. It _hurt_ , hurt in a way it hadn’t since that first night, and the strings slicing his limbs to ribbons were only a small part of it.

\---

Law wasn’t thrown out of the captain’s room until it was nearly dawn, but when he stumbled onto deck he found Luffy sitting against the mast, held in place by strings as razor sharp as the ones which had bound him until minutes ago. He turned his head away before making eye contact, and did his best not to drip too much blood on the deck as he shuffled off to the infirmary. He missed breakfast trying to pull himself together, and patching his body up took until after lunch. When he emerged he found that Doflamingo was kicking Luffy off the crew at the next island, for the crime of throwing Dellinger and Buffalo overboard in the night and nearly losing them one of their own.

Doflamingo allowed Law one last night with Luffy on the island they stopped at, even going so far as to rent a room in a decent hotel. Law would have left after seeing the bed, so similar to Doflamingo’s, but Luffy’s hand was barely touching his shoulder and he didn’t want his last memory of warmth to be something so fleeting. It was hard to let Luffy remove his shirt, but when the rubberman pressed kisses to every fading line where strings had cut across his torso, Law didn’t regret it. Luffy was warm like sunshine, like a perfect summer day made flesh, and when he removed his own shirt Law murmured apologies into sun-kissed bare shoulders which never tanned quite as dark as his.

Luffy’s arms wrapped around him tight, and Law clung back just as hard. He couldn’t leave the Doflamingo Pirates, he’d given his word, but it was so tempting. To leave behind everything he knew, to abandon his identity and start fresh as vice-captain of a yet-unnamed crew led by his Luffy, to spend every day at Luffy’s side as his lover and right-hand man. Law shivered, and Luffy held him tighter in his sleep. It sounded wonderful, but also impossible. Even if he hadn’t sworn he’d stay with the Doflamingo Pirates, he wasn’t anywhere near good enough to be vice-captain to somebody as pure and loving and amazing as Luffy.

Come morning, he bid a quiet farewell to his still-sleeping personal sunshine and returned to Doflamingo. It was odd, how quickly the ship stopped being _home_ with Luffy gone. Dellinger and Buffalo’s tormenting stopped cold, but Law didn’t feel any less miserable for it. Doflamingo named him the third Corazón, filling the seat his brother had vacated five years prior, and that night the captain was gentle for the first time in, well, ever.

They breezed through the first half of the Grand Line, and Law was stunned to discover how far Doflamingo’s influence had spread before they even left North Blue. One of his longer trips several years ago had apparently been to assume control of a country by the name of Dressrosa, and when they arrived there Law found himself put in charge of people he’d never met. Everyone in their kingdom called him Corazón, except for Doflamingo. The shichibukai called him by his title in public, but when he was summoned to the man’s bedroom in the evening he was only ever called by his given name.

\---

A year after Luffy left, Doflamingo dropped a newspaper in Law’s lap after a meeting he’d only halfway paid attention to. It was open to the East Blue section, and a crisp new wanted poster was sitting there smiling up at him. Quite literally smiling. Law felt a grin threatening, but kept his face carefully blank. Of course Luffy would be smiling in his bounty poster. The information given stated he was a captain now, and his crew was named the Straw Hat Pirates. Law’s poker face nearly broke at that, but he managed to thank Doflamingo for the paper and shut it over Luffy’s bounty without batting an eye.

Luffy kept appearing in the paper, and Law felt an absurd pang of jealousy when he read the words vice-captain on Roronoa Zoro’s bounty poster. He had no claim to that title, nor any claim to Luffy himself, but he kept the bounty poster hidden in his desk drawer and one eye on the papers for news of the Straw Hat Pirates.

Nearly a year later, Doflamingo returned from a Shichibukai meeting in Marineford and told them all that Luffy had tried and failed to stop Firefist Ace’s execution. Additionally, Admiral Sakazuki had been the one to kill both of them. Law couldn’t believe it. Luffy, dead? It just didn’t compute. Luffy was indestructible, he was eternal, he was a D. like Law and his brother Ace. D’s didn’t just _die_. A few days later the picture on the front page was Luffy again, covered in bandages but still very much alive, and the tightness in Law’s chest unwound slightly.

Luffy vanished from the papers again after that, and though the other young members of the Family were glad to be rid of such a stain on their crew’s name, Law refused to even suspect that Luffy was dead. Doflamingo set him up to be a Shichibukai, filling one of the empty seats, and Law breathed easier than he had in years when he was sent to Punk Hazard to make sure Caesar Clown had everything he needed to create S.A.D. It was such an incredible relief, being away from Doflamingo, he almost considered making excuses to stay here.

But no matter how much he hated Doflamingo, he couldn’t fight back. Doflamingo was so much stronger than him, and with the number of contacts he had Law wouldn’t get to the next island before he was found and brought back to Dressrosa. The freedoms he had now were few, but he wouldn’t risk them for a short period of complete freedom followed by a lifetime of complete servitude.

\---

Two years after the war at Marineford, Law picked up a newspaper and his mouth actually twitched towards a smile before he stomped that down flat. Luffy was alive. Luffy was alive and well and his bounty had been increased again to four hundred million beri. The picture was now one far more befitting of a pirate, and Law tucked it next to the other two bounty posters in his desk drawer.

Just over a week later, he visited the coliseum to watch Diamante’s fight. His old mentor never failed to disappoint, but Law arrived early and his heart caught in his throat during the Block C brawl. That was Luffy down there, riding on Brutal Bull. Luffy was here, come for Ace’s devil fruit just like Doflamingo had predicted, and Law’s heart swelled as “Lucy” stood victorious over Don Chinjao. Luffy was going to fight in the finals, and if Law knew that idiot he’d manage to win the fight even with how heavily rigged it was.

When Law finally located Luffy, he locked eyes first with the heavily scarred blond on the receiving end of a hug which could probably break the ribs of lesser men. Luffy was in tears, and when the blond acknowledged his presence Law found himself with an armful of sobbing rubberman. And then Luffy was kissing him, and the blond was laughing and Law- Law froze. He wanted so badly to return Luffy’s embrace, to kiss him back and melt into the warmth which hadn’t changed a bit in the three long years they’d been apart, but even as he thought about it he could feel phantom strings tightening around his neck.

Doflamingo was going to kill Luffy. That had been the whole point of this competition, to lure in Straw Hat and get rid of him before he could become a problem. Luffy was going to die, and if Law let himself get sucked back into the rubberman’s pace then he would die as well. Without the tenuous hope of seeing Luffy again, there would be nothing to stop him the next time he contemplated throwing himself in the ocean.

Luffy had stilled with his face pressed into the crook of Law’s neck, hands clutching the back of his coat, and when he began to speak his voice sank through Law’s skin and right into his bones. Luffy was _apologizing_ in that new, deeper voice of his. Apologizing for leaving, for not fighting harder to defeat Doffy back then, for taking so long to come back. He hadn’t stopped crying, and when Luffy lifted his head to ask his Torao to help him destroy Doflamingo for good, Law answered with a kiss.

The battle was hard. Standing up to Doflamingo was a feat in and of itself, and to actively fight back with Kikoku and the Ope Ope No Mi was almost impossible. Only almost though, because Luffy was there. Not at his side, not for the whole battle, but Law knew that the idiot was brawling just a few floors below him and that was enough to keep him moving, keep him fighting. If they lost, he would never have even the slightest bit of freedom again. But if they won, he would be free of Doflamingo forever.

When he woke cradled against an unfamiliar chest, his severed arm clumsily stitched back on, Law barely had enough energy to even attempt to struggle free. Massive hands gripped him tighter, and he stopped moving. Unconsciousness followed soon after.

When he woke again, his head full of fog and surrounded by warmth, Law wondered if this was what it felt like to be peaceful. Luffy was curled against his chest, fingers clutching at a few loose bandages, and Law moved his aching right arm to pull the younger man ever so slightly closer. Luffy had won. They’d fought Doflamingo and he had failed, but Luffy had succeeded. Law was... free. It was a strange word to apply to himself after spending nearly half his life under Doffy’s thumb, but it was accurate now. Luffy had made him free. Luffy, who was smiling and slowly opening his dark eyes.

Law leaned forward, and kissed Luffy gently. The idiot smiled, huge and dopey, and twisted so he was lying on his back. Law pushed himself up, and looked around the room. There were people passed out all over the floor and even a few in chairs, mostly Luffy’s crew. Law generated a Room, just big enough to cover the bed, and began prodding at his arm. The tontatta had done a good job of keeping it alive, but there were nerves and blood vessels which needed to be permanently realigned so his arm didn’t rot and die once Mansherry’s power wore off.

Kikoku was a rather unwieldy tool for such delicate operations, but he didn’t have the energy to Scan for a smaller blade. His demon sword appeared in his hand, and he was poised to draw it when a much smaller blade dropped into his lap. Zoro was sitting up now, and looked rather pleased with himself. Law nodded, and set to work. A few adjustments here and there, and he condensed the bubble until it only covered the place where his arm had been severed. He couldn’t force it to heal all the way before the Room flickered and faded for lack of energy to maintain it, but everything important was properly hooked up now so when the effect of Mansherry’s tears faded he’d probably still be able to use his arm.

It had taken Law a bit more than a day to wake up. It took Luffy three. Law made polite conversation with the Straw Hat crew, and fixed their bandages as best he could. They were Luffy’s crew, but he had no way of knowing what they thought of him. To them, he was just some random guy who defected from Doflamingo. They didn’t know him, didn’t know the year he’d spent falling in love with their captain, or the sacrifices he’d made to keep said rubber idiot alive. Not even Luffy knew what he’d been through in the years since they parted, and hopefully that was the way it would remain.

\---

It wasn’t until several months later that Luffy actually asked Law to join his crew. They were curled together in Luffy’s bunk in the early morning, and something bounced off of the rubberman’s head before the handful of other crewmembers who were conscious began objecting. Not that they already had a doctor, or that they couldn’t trust somebody who had betrayed his last captain, or even that he wasn’t worthy of being part of such a loving nakama, all of which were true. No, they were complaining that Luffy was an idiot, that Law was already one of them, that he’d _been_ one of them since he won Luffy’s heart and made him smile even wider than Ace.

Luffy just laughed, and repeated the question. Law pressed his face into Luffy’s shoulder to hide his smile, and for the first time since Flevance burned, he cried freely.

**Author's Note:**

> This came about, as many plot bunnies of mine do, through a Skype conversation with my sister [dottenator](http://archiveofourown.org/users/dottenator). But as soon as I began drafting, [these](http://flaggermousse.tumblr.com/post/82043225913) [comics](http://flaggermousseart.tumblr.com/post/110675924807) popped into my head and I realized there was a _much_ darker way I could take this than both of them drowning.


End file.
